Cumberland Council staff abuse incidents re-examined by police

BBC News

3 days ago

Four incidents where council staff were subjected to physical and verbal abuse from members of the public will be re-examined by the police.Recent reports from Cumberland Council included one worker being pushed down an embankment and another nearly being crushed when a lorry drove through a closed road.The council's assistant director of highways and transport Karl Melville recently told members of the strategic board that a new awareness campaign would be launched over the summer aimed at reducing attacks on council staff.At a meeting on Thursday, Mr Melville said Cumbria's police and crime commissioner had taken interest in the issue and the cases would be looked at again.
Last year, a similar awareness campaign featured posters of council workers' children placed near roadworks, to remind drivers that those working there have families.
Mr Melville previously told members a lorry went through a road closure at a bridge in Sebergham, nearly crushing one of the workers, while in a separate incident a vehicle travelled through a road closure and collided with the back of a wagon.According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, monthly figures showed incidents of council workers being abused shot up from 34 in March to 64 in April.Mr Melville said re-examining the incidents would send a clear message that they were supporting staff."Any council staff shouldn't be treated any differently to emergency services," he said.
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